Top 10: Weapons That Changed The World

Top 10: Weapons That Changed The World

Human history has been defined by innovation. Often, this has been for the benefit of mankind; for example, through advances in medical science or the other myriad of improvements in living standards. However, these positive changes have been accompanied by continuous developments in man’s other obsession: warfare. An eternal arms race is being run, where weapons become bigger, sharper, more powerful, and more destructive, in an effort to either subjugate other societies or as a deterrent to aggressive neighbors.

While innovations are usually minor adaptations of existing weaponry, occasionally technology makes a great leap forward, marking a revolution in warfare that often proves decisive in conflict. These ballistic transformations were sometimes the catalysts for great societies rising or falling, and were often pivotal moments in defining the outcome of a battle or changing the course of history.

The arms race shows no sign of abating, and with the introduction of the Chinese DF-21, the first nonnuclear weapon capable of destroying an aircraft carrier, we may be about to see the creation of a new generation of game-changing weaponry.

The 10 weapons that changed the world, though, have already proved themselves in war, and transformed the world for subsequent generations.